Degrassi Community School is a fictional middle/high school in the teen drama television series Degrassi: The Next Generation and the titular academy primarily associated with it. The school opened in September 2001 and was the school that held the Degrassi High reunion. The student body is made up of many cultures and backgrounds, paralleling and reflecting the multiculturalism associated with Toronto. Degrassi originally just consisted of students in grade 7 and 8, but merged with grades 9 through 12 in September 2002. By the fall of 2005, the school became a high school for grades 9 through 12 only and remains that way as of the present day.

The school has had four principals, with its current principal being Archie Simpson. To some people, such as Jimmy Brooks, the school is thought of as "a pit of burning fire." However, Degrassi isn't a real school. The set is a mix of the exterior of the Studio C building at Epitome Pictures (for the front entrance) and various studios within (for interior shots). The sets are modeled to resemble the old Centennial Teachers College where exteriors from the previous Degrassi High series were filmed.

Although the building was not originally named Degrassi Community School, the location address of the school was technically founded in 1986, and called Degrassi Junior High School. A different building was used to portray Degrassi High School. Both of these buildings still exist in and their locations can be found at Vincent Massey Junior School at 68 Daisy Street, in the Mimico District of Etobicoke, Ontario (for Degrassi Junior High) andan empty building that was under renovation, that was part of the Centennial College campus in Scarborough, a district in Toronto. Directions to both locations can be found in Kathryn Ellis' excellent book on Degrassi: Degrassi Generations: The official 411. For Degrassi The Next Generation, an Epitome studio building was converted to look similar to the old Centennial college building.

In the Summer of 1991, the school was suffering from major maintenance issues, thus the school was shut down, and students from grades 9 through 11 were sent to other schools around the district. Degrassi High would not re-open until ten years later, in the Fall of 2001 as a Junior High school once again.

Degrassi High School remained closed for the next ten years, but was remodeled and renamed Degrassi Community School. The building re-opened for the new school year starting in September 2001, and hosted the Degrassi High Reunion in August, shortly before the school year started.

The 2006-2007 school year brought major dramatic changes to Degrassi. In the Fall of 2006, a lot of friction had begun arising between the students of Degrassi and its rival school, Lakehurst Secondary School, much of which lead to the eventual murder of Degrassi student, J.T. Yorke, who was killed by Lakehurst student, Drake Lempkey.

Things slowly calmed down after his death, until Lakehurst suddenly burned down during a fire. This forced the students of Lakehurst to move into Degrassi to finish their schooling. The Degrassi students did not welcome them into their lives, obviously due to anger of a Lakehurst student being the cause of J.T. Yorke's death. The event of the schools merging resulted in many fights and hatred between the students.

Since the events that occured in December 2010, in the episode All Falls Down (2) from former student Mark Fitzgerald, the Degrassi students have been required to wear colored polo shirts, with grade 9 freshmans wearing yellow, grade 10 sophomores wearing purple, grade 11 juniors wearing red and grade 12 seniors wearing blue. This uniform regulation has been dropped as of Season 12, and students can now dress as they like, though they still need to wear their IDs.

Contents

Layout

Completely renovated and changed by the Summer of 2001, Degrassi Community School features untraditional design schemes using new materials. Despite being named a Community School, Degrassi does not follow the typical public school layout but closer to being identified as an alternative school, with the heavy emphasis on Media Immersion pointing to the possibility of it being a tech magnet school. By September 2002, the school had yet again been completely changed and reinvented as it underwent a merge to become both a Junior High School and High School.

There are multiple unique aspects of the Degrassi school. In the spacious front entrance lobby, a mural outlooks the front steps, one later redrawn by Jimmy Brooks. Written primarily at the top of the walls above the locker/hallway areas, there are a number of inspirational quotes employed. The main foyer is host to Degrassi's own motto, written larger and bolder than the other quotes. After the death of J.T. Yorke in 2006, a memorial garden is built in his name at the school.

The actual set for where the school scenes are shot in is a warehouse sized studio at Epitome Pictures. Outfitted to look like an actual school, the set features perhaps the most intricate and detailed designs, including numerous fliers, bulletins, and posters pertaining to the fictional Degrassi Community School. The studio is also used for filming the other sets, such as character's bedrooms, in the series. The canonical street address is fictional - De Grassi Street numbers stop well short of 240, and the letter "Q" is not used in Canadian postal codes.

Notable Incidents

2004 School Shooting

Lead-Up

In November 2003, Degrassi student, Rick Murray, had begun dating fellow classmate, Terri MacGregor, both of whom were in grade 10 at the time. Their relationship started out strong, but soon turned abusive on Rick's part. He was very insecure and didn't approve of Terri's friendships with Paige Michalchuk, Hazel Aden, Jimmy Brooks and Spinner Mason. When Terri wanted to hang out with the girls instead of Rick, he shoved her against the wall and threatened her to never choose her friends over him. When she said he was being crazy, Rick slapped her and made her lip bleed. Hazel noticed the bruises and cuts on Terri a few days later and confronted her about it, but Terri shrugged it off and told Hazel to stay out of her personal business. However, after dealing with his physical abuse for several days, Terri broke up with Rick and didn't speak to him for the next six months.

In May 2004, Rick and Terri reconciled and decided to try their relationship again. One day, while away on a weekend road trip with Paige, Hazel, Jimmy and Spinner, they stopped to have lunch in the park and Paige got into a verbal fight with Rick about how he used to treat Terri. Rick ran off in anger and Terri stood up for him by telling Paige to stop being so mean. Paige was mad and told her to go after him. Terri followed Rick into the forest and approached him, even though he was in an agitated state. She managed to calm him down, but when Terri insisted that they go back to sit with the others, Rick felt that she was choosing them over himself and started pulling her away. He then pushed her and her head hit a rock, causing her to fall into a coma. Rick fled the scene and Terri was found, unconcious, by her friends and taken to the hospital. She later recovered, but transferred to a private school due to fear after the incident, while Rick was expelled.

In September 2004, Rick Murray returned to Degrassi after apparently asking the Principal if he could do so and claiming that he liked it there. Due to his previous actions towards Terri MacGregor, he became the victim of an endless line of bullying by nearly every student at the school, especially Spinner Mason and Jimmy Brooks. Emma Nelson even organized a silent protest against Rick, along with Paige Michalchuk. However, Emma soon pitied Rick and defended him from getting beat up by fellow Degrassi students Jay Hogart and Alex Nuñez.

Over the next few weeks, Rick slowly began re-adjusting to his old Degrassi life again. He became friends with Toby Isaacs, and even Jimmy Brooks, despite the fact that Jimmy bullied him at first. When the school's annual Whack-Your-Brain trivia competition was approaching, Archie Simpson, Degrassi's former media immersion teacher, partnered Rick with Emma, Toby and Jimmy for the contest. Rick saw this as a golden opportunity to gain everyone's trust back. Over the course of practicing for the competition, Rick harboured a crush on Emma and was determined to impress her overall during the contest.

When the day of the contest arrived, Rick brought his team to victory, but had no idea that Jay Hogart, Spinner Mason and Alex Nuñez were formulating a plan to humiliate him infront of everyone. After Rick won the contest, Alex had yellow paint and feathers dumped on him. Everyone in the audience laughed, while Rick ran outside humiliated. Emma followed him and said that everyone who laughed only makes them look totally juvenile. Rick, who was caught up in the moment attempted to kiss Emma, but she pushed him away angrily. Rick claimed that he thought she loved him. Emma was shocked and told Rick to get a clue, as she only being nice because she felt sorry for him. Rick was hurt and sent home for the day by Principal Raditch.

Continuity error: One notable error is the date of the Degrassi shooting. Although the episode in which the occasion took place was aired on Tuesday, October 12, 2004, Degrassi's timeline has scripted it to have taken place on October 31, 2004. However, that would have to be impossible since the 31st of October was a Sunday during that year.

Rick Murray went home and returned to school, later that day, with a handgun he had stolen from his home, hidden in his backpack. Toby Isaacs saw him walking into the school and tried to convince him to go back home to settle down, but Rick claimed that this was the first time he actually wanted to be at school.

Rick entered Degrassi and made his way to the cafeteria. It is believed that his first (and only) target was 11th grader, Paige Michalchuk, who had been a friend of Terri MacGregor's, and a major instigator in Rick's bullying, but she unknowingly defused the situation and made peace with Rick by apologizing for what happened to him and informing him that she believed that the prank was uncalled for and very childish. Rick apologized in return for how he treated Terri. He then left the cafeteria and went to put his bag in his locker.

Rick then entered the boy's bathroom to clean himself off and hid in a stall when he heard someone walk inside. Jay Hogart and Spinner Mason entered the restroom and saw a trail of yellow paint and feathers on the floor and sink. Rick overheard Jay and Spinner say that his fellow Whack-Your-Brain teammate, Jimmy, had set him up during the competition. He then left the bathroom, found Jimmy at his locker and shot him as he tried to flee. Next, Rick found his other teammates and Sean Cameron in the hallway and attempted to shoot Emma Nelson in the head, but was prevented by Sean and Rick accidentally shot himself. Jimmy Brooks was brought to the hospital, and the school was put on lock down for several hours, with Hazel Aden being the only student allowed to leave because she was Jimmy's girlfriend.

Aftermath

Jimmy Brooks was paralyzed from the waist down because of his injuries, but eventually started to gain the ability to walk again from physical therapy.

Degrassi implemented a strict zero tolerance policy on bullying. However, is should be noted that it wasn't until December 2010 that the school gained security, in which Degrassi student Mark Fitzgerald brought a knife to a winter dance.

Gonorrhea Outbreak

Later in the year of the school shooting, a Gonorrhea outbreak occurred in the student populace. This outbreak was caused by members of the student body participating in unprotected oral sex. Several of the students who contracted the disease were Jay Hogart, Emma Nelson, Alex Nuñez, and Amy Peters-Hoffman. It is possible that there were others, but none have been confirmed.

Rivalry with Lakehurst High School

Lead-Up

In the 2006-2007 School Year, a violent rivalry started up between Degrassi students and students from Lakehurst Secondary School. The start of the rivalry can be traced back to when J.T. Yorke began dating Lakehurst to Degrassi transfer Mia Jones. Due to the relationship, a fight later broke out between members of the Spirit Squad and several students from Lakehurst, with all involved students gaining two weeks of detention. Nic, a Lakehurst student (and Mia' first boyfriend, but not her daughter's father) declared war on Degrassi.

The War

J.T. Yorke being stabbed by Drake Lempky

Throughout the year, several fights would break out between students from both schools. JT Yorke would visit Lakehurst to fight Nic, but would be prevented by Jones, his best friend Toby Issacs would later be beaten up by several Lakehurst students. A few days later Lakehurst Student Council President Damian Hayes and Vice President Nora visited Degrassi to try to solve the prombems between the schools and they agreed to a Cheerleading competition. Later that night At Liberty Van Zandt's birthday Damian visited to make peace along with fellow Lakehurst classmates Johnny DiMarco and Drake Lempkey. After a few problems with Dimarco and Lempkey, they were thrown out of the party by Spinner Mason and Jay Hogart. A little while after that J.T. Yorke would run into Dimarco and Lempky who were urinating on his car, an enraged Lemkey then stabbed Yorke in the back, before fleeing with DiMarco, and J.T is found by Liberty. JT would be rushed to the hospital but would eventually succumb to his wounds.

The last incident of the War would occur two weeks later while Degrassi was hosting a cheerleading competition that Lakehurst was attending. Still recovering from Yorke's murder, Emma Nelson would lead Degrassi students in a protest against the Lakehurst Cheerleading Squad. Several Degrassi students (lead by Manny Santos) argued against this for the sake of creating peace between the two schools, these students would later be viewed as traitors by their peers.

Aftermath

Aside from the death of J.T. Yorke there were no casualties from the conflicts. Drake Lempkey would later be brought up on charges of murder and incarcerated.

Merger with Lakehurst High School

Several students who transferred to Degrassi after Lakehurst burnt down

Over the winter break of the 2006-2007 school year, Lakehurst Secondary School burned down and the students were forced to move into Degrassi to finish their education.

This transition was not made easy, due to the previous "war" between the two schools, which led to Degrassi's J.T. Yorke's murder by Lakehurst's Drake Lempkey. Fights began to break out between the two groups of students, most notably between Spinner Mason and Johnny DiMarco. Toby Isaacs, who was not happy with the situation, made a popular podcast expressing his feelings about the merger.

After much debate, the Lakehurst clubs and teams were integrated into Degrassi, much to the dismay of Damian Hayes, who wished for Lakehurst to maintain its own identity. There would also only be one valedictorian between the two student bodies, cause friction between the top students.

"The Shep" also gave trouble to the gifted class, which included Clare Edwards, K.C. Guthrie, Alli Bhandari and Connor Deslauriers, calling them names, ranging from "nerds" to "weirdos". He expelled Connor for acting out, although it was discovered he has aspergers. He later got into an argument with Clare Edwards, calling her a "little bitch". This was caught on video, and shown to the entire school, which led to him being sent to sensitivity training. When he returned a few weeks later, he laid low for the rest of the semester. When the more popular and capable Daphne Hatzilakos returned the following semester, he was presumably fired.

The Vegas Night Lockdown (2011)

During the next school year, at the "A Night in Vegas Dance", another lock down came into effect when Mark Fitzgerald, brought a knife to the dance. The knife was reported by Adam Torres, which caused Principal Simpson to send the school into a lock down. Other goings-on during the dance included student Holly J. Sinclair giving a lap-dance to Sav Bhandari in the empty drama room; they were discovered by the police. Also, Owen Milligan offered Alli Bhandari to have sex with him for money. When she decided it was a bad idea, he attempted to rape her, although Drew Torres stopped him before he could go any further.

Eli Goldswothy almost getting stabbed by Mark Fitzgerald

Mark Fitzgerald discovered Clare Edwards and Elijah Goldsworthy in an empty, and dark hallway. Although his intentions were unclear, as when he had the chance to stab Eli, he instead stabbed a wall. The police discovered the group and Fitz was arrested. No one was injured during the lock down, although when Principal Simpson discovers that Clare was the one who let off the stink bomb, and that Eli framed Fitz he is infuriated, and is even more so when an officer reveals to him that Holly J. Sinclair was giving Sav Bhandari a lap-dance. He states that he will enforce new rules when the students return from their winter break, including a new uniform policy.

2011 Prom Shooting

Lead-Up

During Spring Break 2011, Bianca DeSousa's ex-boyfriend Anson got released from jail and threatened to hurt Bianca's current boyfriend Drew Torres. He met up with Bianca at a Keke Palmer concert, and her and Drew got into a fight. Bianca told Drew she was cheating on him with Anson. Anson finds Bianca when she's walking home from the concert and follows her. He then attempts to rape her, but her screams were loud enough and Drew heard her. He ran to Bianca and fought Anson. Bianca got Anson off Drew by hitting Anson over the head with a brick. Bianca and Drew fled the scene, but one of Anson's gang members tried to run after them.

The next morning, Bianca tells Drew that Anson died. They realize that Bianca lost her bracelet that Drew gave her that had her name engraved in the bracelet. They attempt to find it but, Vince, one of Anson's gang members shows them that he has Bianca's bracelet and that he knows things about them (ie: her name, her boyfriend's name, and the name of the school they go to). Vince threatens to shoot Drew. Bianca decides she will try to talk to Vince. They meet up with Vince, and Drew says he is sorry about his friend. Vince says that Anson wasn't his friend, he helped him get paid. Drew will do what he wants, Vince needs Drew to prove that he can trust him first and tells him to shoot someone. Drew realizes that he can't do that and he tells Dave's Dad that he killed Anson and what Vince wanted him to do (to shoot someone).

Vince has been arrested but can't be held so Drew files a restraining order against Vince. Bianca wants Vince to leave Drew alone and she'll sell drugs for Vince. Vince says that the only thing that will make him leave Drew alone is if Bianca sleeps with him. Bianca first refuses, but then agrees to it. Later, Vince's gang members beat up Drew and Drew said that Bianca said that she took care it. One of Vince gang members tells Drew that Bianca slept with Vince.

Bianca has been selling drugs for Vince. Vince says that if she keeps doing her part, everyone'll stay in one piece. Vince tells Bianca that she needs to sell drugs at Degrassi, Bianca attempts to sell drugs to Imogen Moreno, but Imogen doesn't want any. So, when Imogen goes to the bathroom, Bianca steals money from Imogen to pay Vince. After Bianca tries to get out of Vince's hold, he slaps her. Later, Vince buy Bianca some lingerie to apologize. Bianca accepts the lingerie from Vince. Bianca later offers Imogen the lingerie as a peace offering. Bianca explains that a guy bought it for her but the idea of wearing it for him made her stomach turn.

Drew and Adam see Bianca talking to Vince outside of Degrassi. Once in orientation, Drew asks Katie to pair him with Bianca, so he can find out what she's up to. Drew confronts Bianca about Vince and she tells him that it's none of his business. While, Bianca shows a group of niners the Resource Room, Drew looks through Bianca phone and sees texts from Vince with the calling each other, 'Sweetie, Hun, Boo'. Drew confronts Bianca later about it and he asks her if she's spying him for Vince and Drew asks Bianca to tell him the truth. Bianca tells him that she's doing all of this to save Drew's life. She says that she sells drugs and plays the girlfriend role.

Drew asks why he would do it. Bianca, emotionally distraught, said that he was the only good thing in her life and that she couldn't live with herself if he got hurt again. Drew asks what kind of hold he has on her and Bianca shows Drew her arm and Drew sees that Vince has been physically hurting her. After Bianca explained why she signed up, she then went on to proclaim that she would do anything to get away from him for a few hours. Drew says that she can't let him get away with it. Bianca says that she can handle it.

Drew buys Bianca a Prom ticket to get her away from Vince for a couple hours. Drew puts the ticket in her bag and texts Vince from her phone asking Vince to meet her after she's done. Drew takes Bianca's phone. After orientation, Drew meets Vince, and Vince is confused why Drew is there since he has a restraining order against him. Drew says that he's been scared of Vince for too long. Vince agrees that it's over. Bianca calls Drew and Drew says that he took her phone by accident and that he can't wait to see her for prom. Drew tries to shake Vince's hand, but Vince denies it. As Drew walks away Vince has a pissed/not over look on his face.

Bianca notices that Vince is at the prom. And Drew says that they had a deal. Bianca get furious that Drew talked to Vince and tells Drew that with Vince, it's never over. Bianca goes over to talk to him and Bianca tells him to leave and Vince grabs Bianca's wrist and tells him that he's not leaving alone. Drew intervenes and tells him to leave her alone. Vince asks if he's gonna stop him. Drew throws his jacket at his step-brother Adam and Adam tries to stop the fight, but fails. Drew uses his UFC fighting moves and easily beats Vince. Drew takes his jacket back from Adam and tells Vince to leave. Vince pulls out a gun and shoots twice. He then drops the gun and flees the scene. One bullet hits Adam, and Adam best friend, Eli Goldsworthy is the first person to go to Adam's side and sit next to him and holds Adam's arm. Not a second later, Adam's other best friend, Clare Edwards rushes to Adam's side and sits next to him holds his arm and his leg. Drew screams for his girlfriend Katie Matlin, thinking she was shot. Katie and Drew hug tightly and Eli screams, "GUYS!" to get Drew's attention and Drew sees Adam and he and Katie run over to him. Adam holds Drew's hand. Katie apologizes to Adam and says that she has to move his shirt. She asks Drew to get her something. Drew get her a napkin and she takes a part of Adam's shirt off to see that she was shot in the shoulder. Katie is pushing on Adam's shoulder. Drew looks up at Bianca and sees her grab Vince's gun, Drew crying asks Bianca what is she doing and she says that she needs to end things. Adam cries out in pain and Clare and Eli look at Adam. Clare and Drew both crying, Drew pleads, "Be okay, please." When the paramedics finally arrive, they diagnose Adam as Drew stands by Adam, "Shooting victim. 16. Gunshot wound to the shoulder. Current BP: 160 By-pal." Drew asks the paramedic if Adam's gonna be okay. The paramedic looks at Adam then at Drew and tells him it's a clean wound. Drew asks if he thinks he gonna be okay. The paramedic tells him he'll be fine and asks Drew if he's gonna ride along. Drew looks to Eli and Clare and asks if they'll go with Adam to the hospital.

Clare and Eli respond at the same time. Clare nods her head and says, "Of course." And Eli says "Sure." Drew looks at Adam and says that their mom is on her way to the hospital and that he'll meet Adam there. Drew cries on Adam for a moment before leaving. Drew goes after Bianca knowing that she can't defeat Vince on her own. Clare and Eli follow Adam to the ambulance. Drew finds Bianca and she still has Vince's gun in her hand waiting for Vince to come out of his 'Safe House'. Bianca knows that that's where Vince goes after he does anything. Drew tells Bianca that she knows everything about Vince and his gang. Bianca is scared that because she did stuff too, she'll get in trouble. Drew tells her that they will figure it out. Bianca asks when her fancy lawyer cuts her a deal. Drew tells her he'll get Bianca a good lawyer. Bianca hands Drew the gun in her hand and Drew hands her his phone and she calls the cops. Eli and Clare are in the hospital with Adam with his arm in a sling. Eli tells him that he thinks that girls think scars are cool, looking at Clare for reassurance. Adam sarcastically says that now he has another thing to explain when he takes his shirt off. Eli and Clare smile and laugh. Adam's mom, Audra Torres, comes into the hospital saying, "Baby?!" Adam turns his head, "Mom." Audra come up to Adam and hugs him, "Baby!" and kisses the top of Adam's head. She is so relieved that Adam is okay. Clare and Eli walk to the side of the hall to give Adam and his mom some time. As Clare and Eli talk they both watch Adam. The police take Vince's gun a evidence and Bianca sits in one cop car while Vince is put into the back of another and on cop talks to Drew and Katie. Katie and Drew watch Vince get arrested. The next morning, Drew, Bianca, and Katie come into Adam's hospital room. Drew sighs a breath of relief when he sees Adam. Drew hugs Adam and tells Adam that he is 'so, so, so sorry, baby bro.' Drew puts his head where Adam was shot. Adam winces and tells Drew that he's really sore. Drew promises that when Adam gets home, he'll be his butler. He'll get Adam breakfast in bed and play Xbox whenever he wants. Drew says that it's all his fault. Audra stands at the door and says, "Isn't it all her fault. Referring to Bianca. Audra is confused as to why Bianca is at the hospital. Drew tells his mom that Bianca spent all night with detectives and that she told the detectives everything about Vince's gang. Drew tells his mom that Bianca's gonna need a good lawyer. He looks a Bianca and says, "or two." Audra walks into Adam's hospital room and says they'll talk. Bianca mouths 'Thank you' to Drew as she did when Drew took the heat for Bianca when she killed Anson.

Suicide of Campbell Saunders (2013)

Lead-Up

In January, 2013, Campbell Saunders (nicknamed Cam) transferred to Degrassi as a member of the Toronto Ice Hounds. Cam was a high graded hockey prodigy, and had a very promising future in the NHL. Being only a sophomore, Cam was the youngest member of the team, and was picked on constantly, but was also praised for his skill as the team's best player. This made his time at Degrassi difficult, as Cam felt that he was constantly being given too much pressure, and would be scolded if he was anything less than perfect. Being away from his home, Cam looked toward Senior Mike Dallas as an older brother figure, though the two felt close to each other, Dallas would also pick on Cam.

Campbell after finding out Maya and Tristan lied to him.

During the first week of school, Cam meets two underclassmen, Maya Matlin and Tristan Milligan. He became friends with Maya through Tristan, who harbored a crush on him, but stepped out of the way because it was clear Maya had a better chance with the heterosexual athlete. Initially, Cam scolded them and poked fun at Tristan, though this was only to impress his teammates. Not long after befriending them, Cam showed a strong hint of inner sadness when he found out that Tristan had been sending him messages through Maya's phone, and initially broke off their friendship.

A few weeks later, Cam suffered a string of bad luck, but was able to get over it by winning a hockey game for the Ice Hounds. Seeing Maya at the team's celebration, he decides to talk to her and patches things up. The two later go out on a date which Maya's older sister, Katie Matlin, chaperons. The two manage to ditch Katie and Cam reveals to her that he actually doesn't like hockey at all. After several one-sided attempts on Maya's behalf, the two share their first kiss.

Beginning

By February 2013, Cam suffers another string of bad hockey games, and Luke in particular will not let him forget this. During their latest hockey match at this moment, Cam decides to finish the game on his own, resulting in a humiliating loss. To help him get over his depression, Maya invites him to a night at a karaoke bar with her friends. Cam cannot go because he has practice. Cam later begins a Skype chat with his mom and reveals how homesick he is. He states that he doesn't feel comfortable playing hockey anymore and cannot understand why. Cam then decides to ditch hockey practice to see Maya.

At the restaurant, Cam has fun with his friends, but unfortunately, other Degrassi students caught footage of the moment and leaked it onto the internet, which the Ice Hounds eventually found the next day. The team take Cam and force him to train constantly and painfully until he reached total exhaustion. Satisfied, his fellow team members leave him on the ice to wallow in his over worked pain. Later in the locker room, Dallas catches Cam changing and tells him that they are the closest thing to family he currently has. This only makes Cam angry, and as Dallas leaves, Cam throws his ice skates in anger, accidentally cutting his hand in the process. Cam sees the wound and with that, begins to regularly harm himself.

The next day, Cam examines his plays and realizes that he is a better player right wing, rather than left. Maya agrees with him, and during the interaction, notices Cam's wound. Cam later goes to Dallas to talk about his idea, knowing the coach probably wouldn't listen to a rookie. During this time, he sees Luke and two other hockey players dangling from the Degrassi balcony. Dallas yells at them for this. Cam talks to him about his idea, and Dallas states that he'll think about it. During that nights game, Luke threatens Cam that if he ruins the game, he'll ruin his life. During the game, Cam starts strong and wins the game with the final shot, making him into the school celebrity. Not only this, but several sports news stations take an interest in Cam and he actually becomes famous.

Dallas, knowing Cam has stage freight, invites the news reporters, and when Cam freezes in shock, takes the chance to talk about Cam himself and showcase his own ability. As a result, Cam suffers a panic attack. He grabs his skate and nearly cuts himself again. Cam begins skipping school, which only makes the public even more anxious. A worried Maya tells him to take a break from hockey. Cam takes her advice and literally breaks his own arm by jumping off the Degrassi balcony. This gives him a break from hockey and time to spend with Maya.

In early March 2013, Cam and Maya's relationship begins to suffer and Maya breaks up with him, complaining that he makes it too difficult for her to know what he wants. After the break-up, Maya kisses her band mate, Zig Novak, who was also her original crush, and was currently going out with her best friend. Not long after this moment, Maya regrets her decision and gets back together with Cam. However, Zig persists Maya, resulting in Maya revealing the incident to Cam, Cam initially takes the incident to heart, but decides to forgive her later.

The Incident

Returning to school after Spring break, Cam and Maya participated in the 2013 School Spirit Week. Unfortunately, Cam finds out that the two will not only be on separate teams, but he'll have to be on the same team with Mike Dallas, who had begun to pressure him once again since his injury had healed. If this weren't bad enough, he discovers that Maya is on the same team as Zig, who had previously been obsessed with being with her. Cam decides to place his trust in Maya, but Tristan appears and warns him that even if Maya doesn't wan't Zig, Zig will still persist, and it's him Cam should be worried about.

Cam remembers these words, and during his match with Zig and Maya's team, he attacks Zig in front of everybody. When Cam later tries to explain what had happened, Zig, and even Maya tell him he took things too far. Cam ends up suspended for a week as a result.

Later at the Matlin home, Cam appears with a bouquet of flowers and apologizes to Maya, who forgives him. The two have a fun night and cuddle on Maya's couch. Katie tells Cam that he'll have to go home, but Maya manages to persuade her into letting him stay over "on the couch in full view". Maya tells Cam about her favorite stuffed animal, "Hoot", a little stuffed owl. The next morning, Cam playfully sends Maya a message stating that he has kidnapped Hoot and will not give him back until she discussed his return with him on the Degrassi steps. During his wait, he purchases breakfast for the two, but Zig catches him on the front steps of Degrassi. Cam gloats about attacking Zig and still ending up with Maya. A hurt Zig tells Cam that he shouldn't be so happy, and eventually, Maya will see what he sees; a psycho who will only ruin Maya's life eventually. Cam is visibly hurt by this, and is so distraught that he sends Maya a text message breaking up with her. That night, Campbell Saunders commits suicide in the Degrassi Greenhouse. He is discovered the next morning by Eli Goldsworthy.

Aftermath

Everyone in the school reacts differently:

Maya is initially cold and unforgiving, and goes through a noticable identity crisis.

Dallas is inconsolable, feeling terribly about how he treated his teammate. He gets drunk one day and nearly commits suicide himself, fortunately, his friend, Fiona Coyne, is able to council him out of it.

Zig feels completely responsible, not only being the last person to talk to Cam, but believing his words toward him is what brought him to suicide.

Eli Goldsworthy sucumbs to post traumatic stress upon being the first to see Cam's dead body, and begins to act out. His antics included taking MDMA and streaking through the school while high off the product.

Alli feels somewhat guilty and doesn't know what to say since she knew what was happening in Cam's head but didn't report it.

Tori, Marisol, and Katie want to help Maya as much as they can, since they believe she is in the most pain.

The Ice Hounds feel weird playing without Cam, said by Dallas and Luke.

The Sexual Assualt of Zoë Rivas (2014)

Lead-Up

In the Summer of 2013, Former West Drive actress Zoe Rivas had been kicked off the show due to her drug addiction; had enrolled at Degrassi for the upcoming school year. Growing up on the sets of West Drive, Zoe had never had a normal life and with intent of having a fresh start; Zoe was nervous about being a normal teenage girl and used her body and money to get what she wanted. This made her time at school difficult as during the summer she had a intense conflict with her fellow classmate Maya Matlin and resented her for suppsodlyy stealing her♙boyfriend stealer.

In the Summer, Zoë along with several other Degrassi students were planing on attending a class trip to Paris, following her entering Madame Jean-Aux classroom; she meets Tristan Milligan and Maya Matlin. She intentially became best friends with Tristan after she recognized him from the West Drive Experience a blog he runs about the show but, started off on bad terms with Maya even going so far as to ditch her at a concert she invited Tristan to and Maya had tagged along to. A couple of weeks later in order to show up Zoe, Maya buys a expensive dress to wear for a dinner for the students; with intent of returning it later on. At the dinner, Zoë is angry that Miles finds Maya's dress flattering and throws her drink on Maya. Miles, Tristan, and Maya are angry at her. Tristan ends his friendship with her and Miles then breaks up with her and she sits at another table and stares them down while crying. On the bus, she cries while starring down Tristan and Maya.

The Beginning

At school, Zoë walks in on Drew Torres trying to figure out his speech to Mr. Hollingsworth. She offers to help him. During her time offering him advice, he kisses her. Drew is apologetic to Zoë, who tells him he can kiss her whenever he wants. However, she wants to know about his fiancee. He tells her they broke up. They continue to kiss. Zoë then tells her friends of how Drew asked her out. While talking to her friends, Drew comes up behind her and they start making out.

She is seen unexpectedly arriving when Drew is organizing a meeting with Mr. Hollingsworth. She compliments him and says how she is a big fan of Mr. Hollingsworth and asks to be able to spend more time with Drew. She kisses him goodbye and walks off, embarrassing Drew. Later, Drew approaches her and she asks him what he's wearing so they can match and look like a "power couple". Drew tries "breaking up" with her, but Zoe does not get the message since he does not make himself clear.
She shows up later on to help him out, bringing him snacks, and asks what she can do for him. Drew demands to know what she is doing there. She says how she is helping him out since they cannot spend time together due to his job, but Drew says that he broke up with her. Confused, Zoe says he didn't. Drew says how he was letting her down easy, but she clearly didn't get the message. Zoe is stunned how easy it was for him to dump her and reminds him that they had sex. Drew says that he regrets that now. He tries touching her arm, but she steps back and storms off in tears.
She is next seen in Mr. Simpson'smoffice, her mother wanting to file a rape report on Drew for having sex with Zoe. Drew tries insisting that it was consensual, but her mother says it does not matter due to him being 18 and Zoe 15, hence a minor. Mr. Simpson, however, says that if it was consensual, there is nothing illegal about it due to Canada's close in age exemption laws that legally allows it. Zoe admits it was. Her mother wants to do something against Drew since he hurt Zoe, but there is nothing that can be done.

Zoe partying at Miles' house party.
Later on, she is seen coming up to her locker where the word "Ho" has been spray painted on it. Drew is there, trying to rub it off and shows her how he got her flowers. She just stares at him. He says he doesn't know what else to do. She tells him how he used her, got to keep his job and friends, and that his life hasn't changed one bit. He says that he's sorry, but she tells him not to be; she should be thanking him. She tells him how her mother always warned her not to trust boys, but she never believed her - until now.

The Incident

In February 2014, Following a her break up with Drew Torres, she was invited by Winston Chu to a party hosted by Miles Hollingsworth III to drown her sorrows in a good party. That night, she drunkenly walks through the crowd, bumping into Zig and Frankie, before finding Miles by himself. She asks him where his "apple cheecked girlfriend" is at. Miles tells her how she didn't enjoy the party. Zoe asks if they had a fight and remarks how "judgy people like her with their perfect little lives" have no idea what it's like to be someone with real problems. She says that once people like that make up their minds about them, they don't change. She strips down to her bra and panties and collapses on top of him, wrapping her arms around them. She says that whatever people like them do together, it doesn't matter.

The two almost kiss, but are stopped by Winston. She passes out on Miles and Winston decide to take her to the pool house to sober up. Then later on in the evening, She is found in the pool house and sexually assaulted by Luke Baker and Neil Martin.

The OomphChat Fundraising Scandal (2014)

Lead-Up

After Spring Break, Becky Baker returned to Degrassi and started Degrassi Power Cheer; Tryouts soon took place that same week and several Degrassi students such as Zoë Rivas, Frankie Hollingsworth, Jack Jones, Shay Powers, and Lola Pacini tryout but, only Frankie, Jack, Shay, and Lola made the Degrassi Power Cheer Squad. Zoë however was not let on the squad because; Becky told Zoë that she couldn't be on Power Cheer because Becky said she was a "distraction" and carried "baggage". Zoe did not go down without a fight, while performing a routine Zoe informed Becky that Becky's boyfriend had got another girl pregnant; causing Becky to be distracted she fell of the top of the pyramid and broke her leg, allowing Zoe to be let on the Power Cheer team.

The Beginning

With Zoë struggling to figure out a way to make money for Power Cheer expenses and after Frankie pointed out the double standards on girls from boys, Zoë suggested the idea of selling nudes for money on a social networking app known as OomphChat to do this she insisted the help of Grace who set up the app for boys to choose a handle of girls and pay for it using their credit card, for 50% of the profit. All the girls on the Power Cheer except Frankie accepted taking part in doing this after Zoe told them that boys use them as objects and this would be their way of gaining control, anyone who didn't do it would be kicked off the squad which made Frankie change her mind. Soon after all the Oomphchatting the squad raised enough money for the equipment and other expenses they needed for Power Cheer.

Later after seeing a rival squad performing and seeing their equipment, Zoë bought new equipment for the Power Cheer squad useing the OomphChat money they had made, much to the dismay of the members which she insisted it wasn't a big deal as they would make more money but, Frankie stated that the longer it's done the greater the chance that they would get caught and that Zoe should have asked first and Zoe said that she's the captain and should not need to ask permission. Later on after talking with Grace about her trouble with squad, stating Frankie is the problem Grace tells her, Frankie hasn't been Oomphchatting which leaves Zoe angry. After returning the equipment, Zoë bribed the girls the girls with wallets and then reveals the information she learned from Grace. Zoe then tells Frankie that she has a choice to keep Oomphchatting, or she will be kicked out of Power Cheer squad. Frankie then decides to quit the squad not wanting to continue Oophchatting.

The Incident

Zoë celebrates her birthday the same day that the power cheer squad had a bake sale. After getting wishes from the squad, someone gives her a package with a doll dressed as a power cheer squad member. As everyone walked away, she notices a string and pulls it. She learns that someone knows she is behind Degrassi Nudes. Later, she receives a text wanting her to quit the squad, causing her to think of excuses to quit the squad. However after the girls give her a present, she ignores the text. During Power Cheer practice, the members of the team get a threatening text telling them to kick Zoë off the team or their nude OomphChat scheme will be exposed to the school.

Zoë, Shay, Jack, and Lola are discussing their problem regarding the messages and threats. As Zoe reveals her previous sent messages and how she thought shutting down the web site would make it all go away. They decide to head back to Grace to see who the blackmailer is, where Grace uses Lola's phone to triangulate the sender's signal. Which reveals its coming from the Hollingsworth's home, Zoe instantly believes it to be Frankie, but the girls believe Frankie to innocent to do something so extreme for revenge. After remembering about Hunter, they all agree it must be him. Grace advises them to get solid evidence of it being him before making such a big accusation so quickly, but none of the girls take her warning seriously.

They approach Hunter while he is in an empty classroom by himself and instantly begin accusing him of being the sender. Hunter appears confused by their accusations, but they quickly take his laptop where they find his comics about them. After taking pictures of his graphic comics on his laptop, they threaten to send them to Mr. Simpson with the possibility of suspension if he doesn't stop with the messages. He agrees to it, leading them to believie the worst to be over. Imogen learns from Hunter about Degrassi Nudes, after he ask if she's behind Degrassi Nudes, she then takes a picture of a screenshot from his phone and she goes around asking if anyone recognized the boobs, which she later accident tells Mr. Simpson. Mr. Simpson later holds a assembly to find out about the offending fundraising scheme. Zoe gets another blocked message, and belives its Hunter but, it's revealed not to be him sending the messages, and Zoe jumps to the conclusion that it must be Frankie.

Zoe tells the cheer team, and they all agree it must be Frankie. Later, Zoe offers to let Frankie back into the team, and Frankie accepts. However, when Frankie is getting dressed into her uniform, Zoe snaps a picture of Frankie naked, and threatens to send it to the whole school if Frankie doesn't stop sending the messages. Frankie assures Zoe it's not her sending the messages, and calls her a rotten person. At the assembly, Zoe speaks saying the nudes, are a huge upset, and that she knows what it's like to have revealing pictures spread around. Zoe decides to delete the picture of Frankie. However, the anonymous person sends a blocked text with a picture of Zoe, Lola and Shay revealing their faces while standing in the power cheer uniforms with their breasts covered saying between the three of them "Cheerleading Fundraiser" to everyone including Mr. Simpson, revealing that the cheerleaders are behind it all.